Practice Begins in Argentina for Movistar Yamaha MotoGP2015-04-18 12:25With just a couple of days rest following the Texas Grand Prix last weekend, the Movistar Yamaha MotoGP team were back on track today for the first practice session of this weekend‘s GP de la República Argentina. The first morning session at the Autòdromo Termas de Río Hondo was taken gently by riders Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo, the two testing the grip levels as the premier class group added fresh rubber to the slippery circuit. Rossi completed the first free practice session in 14th and teammate Lorenzo in 20th. The second session saw light rain in the opening minutes, but the drama was short lived and the track quickly dried. The two Yamaha Factory riders gradually picked up their pace, taking over four seconds off their FP1 times as the grip levels rose. The improvements continued lap by lap to end with Lorenzo in sixth, 0.687 from the top and Rossi in ninth, 1.171 from first. Jorge Lorenzo 99 Jorge Lorenzo 6th / 1'39.463 / 18 laps “The grip obviously improved from the first practice to the second and I felt really good with the hard tyre. We put a soft tyre in to improve the lap time towards the end and we were able to do it. Apart from Alex Espargarò with the extra soft tyre we are very close to the rest so let‘s see for tomorrow. There‘s going to be less of a difference than between today‘s sessions but there should be a positive improvement and the rear tyre should last longer. I have a good feeling for the hard tyre so we need to find a good set up for the soft too.” Profile Profile 46 Valentino Rossi 9th / 1'39.947 / 18 laps “In the second practice the condition of the track improved a lot and already the lap time is very competitive. The big issue is the tyres, we have to decide on the rear and also the front. The first impression of the bike is not so bad although we have to work on the balance and the settings. The position is not fantastic but we are not very far from the top guys so tomorrow we will try to improve the feeling with the bike and also the lap time.” Profile Profile Valentino Rossi Massimo Meregalli Team Director “This morning‘s practice was mostly about the riders putting rubber on the track. During the second session we did enough hard work for today. Very importantly we were able to compare the extra hard and the medium tyres for the race. For sure we will get some more precise feedback tomorrow when the circuit will be in a better condition but so far we are satisfied with our results. Jorge has been consistently fast and Vale was able to climb up the time sheets whilst switching between different bike set ups. Tomorrow we will prepare new steps for FP3 and I am confident that we will be at the sharp end of the field for qualifying and be ready for a good race.” Massimo Meregalli NOTES The extended imagery from today's Free Practice sessions (1 and 2) at the Autódromo Termas de Río Hondo is available on www.yamahamotogp.com. COMBINED FREE PRACTICE RESULTS Results 1. Aleix Espargaro (SPA) Team Suzuki Ecstar MotoGP 1'38.776 2. Andrea Iannone (ITA) Ducati Team 1'39.311 3. Marc Marquez (SPA) Repsol Honda Team 1'39.336 4. Cal Crutchlow (GBR) CWM LCR Honda 1'39.403 5. Andrea Dovizioso (ITA) Ducati Team 1'39.434 6. Jorge Lorenzo (SPA) Movistar Yamaha MotoGP 1'39.463 7. Pol Espargarò (SPA) Monster Yamaha Tech3 1'39.648 8. Scott Redding (GBR) Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS 1'39.892 9. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Movistar Yamaha MotoGP 1'39.947 10. Yonny Hernandez (COL) Pramac Racing 1'40.088 11. Maverick Viñales (SPA) Team Suzuki Ecstar MotoGP 1'40.126 12. Bradley Smith (GBR) Monster Yamaha Tech3 1'40.195 13. Danilo Petrucci (ITA) Pramac Racing 1'40.438 14. Nicky Hayden (USA) Aspar Team MotoGP 1'40.522 15. Karel Abraham (CZE) AB Motoracing 1'40.586 16. Hector Barbera (SPA) Avintia Racing 1'40.626 17. Stefan Bradl (GER) Forward Racing 1'40.672 18. Eugene Laverty (IRL) Aspar Team MotoGP 1'40.846 19. Jack Miller (AUS) CWM LCR Honda 1'40.864 20. Alex De Angelis (RSM) Octo IodaRacing Team 1'41.152 21. Hiroshi Aoyama (JPN) Repsol Honda Team 1'41.380 22. Alvaro Bautista (SPA) Aprilia Racing Team Gresini 1'41.490 23. Mike Di Meglio (FRA) Avintia Racing 1'41.531 24. Marco Melandri (ITA) Aprilia Racing Team Gresini 1'41.576 25. Loris Baz (FRA) Forward Racing 1'41.784 CIRCUIT INFORMATION Technical Informations Circuit Autódromo Termas de Río Hondo Location Termas de Río Hondo, Argentina Length (m) 4.806 Width (m) 16 Turns 14 Turns righ 9 Turns left 5 Pole position left Grand Prix of Argentina Record Lap Time 1'39.233 Rider D.Pedrosa Bike Honda Year 2014 Best Lap Time 1'37.683 Rider M.Marquez Bike Honda Year 2014 2014 Results 1st M.Marquez (Honda): 41'39.821 2nd D.Pedrosa (Honda): +1.837 3rd J.Lorenzo (Yamaha): +3.20 Source: Yamaha MotoGP Click here to visit our forums to discuss this story |
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